Tongue-support



(No Model.)

C. BEHRINGER.

TONGUE SUPPORT- No. 465,913. Patented Dec. 29,'1s91.

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CHARLES 'BEHRINGER, OF DEFIANCE, OHIO.

TONGUE-SUPPORT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 465,913, dated December 29, 1891. Application filed June 10, 1891. Serial No. 395,784. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES BEHRINGER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Defiance, in the county of Defiance and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Spring-Supported Wagon- Tongues, of which the following is a description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

My invention relates to improvements in wagons; and it relates directly to means for supporting wagon-poles and comprises a construction and arrangement forming a counterbalance, which operates to relieve the draftanimals of the weight of the pole.

The invention is embodied in means for spring-supporting the said poles, and the novelty thereof consists in the construction, attachment, adjustability, and relation of the various parts one to another.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of I the hounds, front axle, brace-rods, and circle.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the tongue with the counterbalancing-spring in operative position. Fig.3 is a bottom plan view of the tongue and spring.

In Fig. 1,A is the front axle ofan ordinary wagon, with the houndsH H supported thereon in any well-known manner. The circle 0 is suitably fixed to the hounds, and has upon its front side an enlarged or flattened section B for the spring S to rest against. A bolt L serves as the axis or pivot upon which the pole or tongue P is carried and supported between the hounds H H, and it also serves as a fulcrum upon which the outer end of the pole is lifted by the pressure of the spring S. The cross-iron I fastens the ends of the hounds firmly to each other and serves, as in ordinary construction, as a rest for the tongue when the spring S is not" in use. The said spring, as seen in Fig. 2, is secured to the under side of the tongue P, passes back and is curved up around the end of said tongue, and presses upwardly against the section B of the circle 0. The said spring is of the same width or smaller than the tongue P where it is inserted between the hounds.

As seen in Fig. 3, a clip D is placed across the under side of the spring and there held by bolts 1) b, which pass through the spring and into the tongue P. These bolts are provided with lock-nuts, and by means of them and the clip the spring is raised up toward the tongue or lowered, thereby exerting more or less pressure upon the section B of the circle G and so supporting more or less of the weight of the tongue P. The pressure of the spring may or may not be sufficient to raise the tongue from the cross-iron I. It will of course only be so raised when the entire weight is carried by the spring, and this might not always be desirable.

The only connection between my device and the hounds is made through the upward pressure of the spring against the circle 0, and its simplicity of construction, adj ustability, and ease with which it may be removed from the hounds make it practicable and very useful.

I do not limit myself to the exact construction herein described, as the minor details of my device might be changed in many ways without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s

1. The combination, with the hounds and tongue of a vehicle, of a spring attached at one end to the under side of said tongue and extending around the rear end thereof, and a bearing for the other end of said spring carried by the hounds, and a device attached to the tongue, regulating the tension of the spring.

2. The combination, with the tongue and hounds of a vehicle, of a spring fixed at one end to the tongue and extending rearwardly parallel thereto from its point of attachment, a bearing supported by the hounds against which the free end of the spring presses, and an adjusting device for the spring, also fixed to and carried by the tongue.

3. The combination, with the tongue and hounds of a vehicle, of a flat curved springattached at one end to the tongue and extending rearwardly parallel thereto, its other end pressing against the circle supported by and fixed to the hounds, and a tension device attached to the tongue, regulating the pressure of the spring upon the said circle.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses. 1

CHARLES BEHRINGER. Witnesses:

J NO. P. CAMERON, A. H. Wool). 

